Monday, June 06, 2016

Disconnect/Reconnect

Hello friends. Thought I would reach out again from the depths of my fortress of solitude to let you know I'm still alive and how my week went. My social media break has been serving me well. I feel like my mind and body are getting some much needed rest and quiet. I certainly recommend doing this for yourself! Give a listen to this song by the Rollins Band. The lyrics are exactly what I feel about what I'm doing:



I have not been super productive to be honest. I have done some writing and finishing up some reward things for the Starslam kickstarter. But other than that, nothing else. We'll see what happens. Right now, I am just enjoying the break from everything.

In my time of disconnection, I'm taking time to reconnect to parts of me and my life that I had forgot about.

Saturday I finally had a full day off with myself. I had many thoughts of what I should do with a whole day on my own. Maybe get some work done. Maybe take a trip to Kalamazoo or Grand Rapids to do some shopping. But ultimately, I chose to drive to Saginaw/Midland. I hadn't been to Saginaw in well over ten years. I have friends in Midland and while I was hoping to possibly run into them, it didn't happen. We all lead busy lives and my trip was quite unplanned. So in a way, I preferred it as a solo trip for me. A chance to clear my mind and just enjoy the drive.

I went a back way into Saginaw and hit a couple newer stores that sold used media, coming up empty handed. Then I found an old stomping ground: The Fashion Square Mall on Bay Rd.

The exterior looks the same. However inside, lots of my favorite stores are gone. The large bookstore is now an Ambercrombie and Fitch. But there was a used video game store in there, where I purchased NES DRAGON WARRIOR in the box! The clerk told me he had been there for over eight years. Good for them!
Near the mall were the remnants of what I used to hit up every time I went to Saginaw on a shopping trip when I lived in Mt. Pleasant (High School to College years). The big Media Play is no more. Its now a sporting goods place or something. The used CD/DVD store called "The Turntable" is long gone.  In a way, its sad to see those places gone but exciting to know that new places have popped up to replace them. Not as good, but they are trying.

After hitting the mall and a used game store called "GAME ON," I headed to Midland, making a stop in the legendary town of Bay City. I was tracking down the rumor that one of the only two HOT N NOW restaurants still thrived there. So I took the chance and did a search and I struck gold!

There she is! THERE SHE IS!!!! AHHHHHHHHHH....
 Hot N Now used to thrive in the mid-90s to mid-2000s here in Michigan. They were everywhere. Burgers for 39¢. I used to frequent them a lot when I was in college. The one in my hometown of Mt. Pleasant closed in the early 2000s and that was the last time I had them, until now! I placed my order and got the bag. Immediately a smell of fries and their burgers hit me. Like a smell I hadn't encountered in well over 14 years. The taste was the same. It put a smile on my face. I kinda quit fast food almost a month ago but this was a special treat. I sat in the parking lot and ate the burger and fries, just like I did in college. It really took me back. Its rare that you can reach into the past and pull out an experience like that. I enjoyed every bite just for that reconnection to my past.

After that I headed to Midland to find another used video game store for NES classics. I drove past old haunts, seeing that the old porn video rental store is gone. The Ponderosa I used to eat at every Midland trip is gone. But something special still remained....

In Midland, there is still a LIL' CHEF Restaurant. The old one in Mt. Pleasant, a frequent haunt of mine and well documented as a location in my comic: PLEASANT LIFE, is no more. So it was nice to see at least its cousin once again. I'll never forget that sign with the cute little chef on it. I didn't go inside, but it was just nice to see it and remember it again.
On Saginaw Rd. in Midland I found the other GAME ON used game store. I found a special Gem: The Legend of Zelda for NES, in the box! I had to scoop that up. The Legend of Zelda is my favorite video game of all time. To have this piece of my childhood, complete and in the box was a rare treasure. I felt like I had been gifted for my idea to come to these old haunts, just by finding that. I was saddened to learn that the old video store that was near there had closed. So it goes. Things and time have come and swept away lots of the places I had loved going to.

On my way out of town, I stopped by this old porn store called AFTER DARK FANTASIES. It was among the first porn stores I used to go to when I was younger. This swinger couple used to run it. Now it has new owners and its a couple doors down from where it was in the same strip mall outside of Sanford, MI. I walked around inside but didn't get anything. But it was nice to know that for as many places I used to know are gone, the porn store still remains! 

I hit M-20 and drove to Mt. Pleasant just for a quick run through, before hitting the expressway for home. I thought about stopping to see my brother but it would have added a couple hours to my trip and I wanted to get home to actually maybe get some work done. He was probably busy anyway. I guess I got cold feet about it because I struck out seeing my friends in Midland. But I was enjoying being on my own anyway. So I just drove through the old hometown seeing how much had changed. There were some new buildings and restuarants in place of old ones. Facades of buildings have been upgraded. Everywhere I looked I'd think, "Such and such used to be there. Now its gone." Nothing reminded me of what I once knew. Its like I was taken back in time going to Saginaw, only to be reminded that its 2016 and so much has changed when I hit Mt. Pleasant. 

I drove home in silence. Not saddened, but comfortable. Happy I took the trip down memory lane but content that change has happened and it is good. 

Change happened everywhere. 
In places. 
In me. 

Time came and swept away lots of what I once knew as "my life." But it was good to know that I still remembered what it all looked like, and how it tasted and smelled. A stupid little failed burger chain helped me reconnect with what was. That feeling alone, was worth the trip.

I get back to my home and put away my nostalgic finds of old video games and used Blu rays from my trip. 

My NES collection is growing! I'm especially proud of my inbox game finds!
Everything I own is a shrine in a museum of my life. The posters I got for my new apartment are all old movies I love. I bought special cleaners to take care of my 30+ year old video games. I did some writing and then I curled up and watched some STAR TREK, a 50 year old TV Show. And I felt content. I felt happy. Calm. It was a nice sensation. Later my girlfriend came out and we talked and I told her about my experiences reconnecting with my past. Then we held each other until I fell asleep with her. 

I don't think I've had a better night's sleep in a long time. 

--T

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